What Is The Last Film You Watched? (Older Films)

[Romão 2,274]

On 5/16/2021 at 2:18 PM, Marian Schedenig said:

 

I've always been quite impressed by it, and I never had a big problems with the gargoyles like apparently everyone else. It's still a Disney film, after all - I'd say they simply come with the territory. The film has some of Disney's darkest and most dramatic sequences, but you still have to expect the lighter side to show up as well. It's still a good mix to me, and despite the happy Disney ending, it's in many respects more faithful to the book than the Dieterle/Laughton version, as far as I remember. Disney's most invasive (and perhaps "problematic" when compared to the source material) change might be painting Phoebus as a hero throughout.

 

Nevertheless, it would of course have been fascinating if they had strictly stuck to the original ending. But it would probably have traumatised generations of children as well.  

 

It has three sequences that I would rank among the very best Disney has ever produced: The Bells of Notre Dame, Hellfire and Sanctuary. A triumph of visual, musical and lyrical storytelling. What's between those sequences never quite reaches the same level, and the tone is all over the place.

 

A tough one to rate, that one. It does have 15 absolutely fantastic minutes in it

[A24 4,333]

7 hours ago, Chen G. said:

 

I'm told its a comedy, but I'd be lying if I said I watched Princess Bride rolling-over laughing.

 

A lot of it is struck me as a straight-faced adventure film.

 

You had to be there in 1987, when somehow this movie made more sense. 

[Chen G. 3,949]

Coming off - and providing a parody - of the botched fantasy films of the 1980s?

[Jay 37,359]

 

Sicario: Day of the Soldado

 

Wow!  I had never seen this before; I saw the first film and loved it, but the sequel being made without Villeneuve or Blunt made it look like kind of a cash grab to me.  Even though it got some great reviews I kinda hesitated about it.  A few months ago we watched Sicario, and I loved it again.  So now I have finally watched the sequel and... it's surprisingly good?  Like, I think I like it more than the first one? 😲

 

The first film is so great because it primarily follows Emily Blunt's character as she gets mixed up in the world Josh Brolin is shaping.  Everything goes according to Brolin's plan, but you never know what it all is about because Blunt doesn't know and finds out along the way.  So you're engaged with the story the whole time as it's filled with amazing action and tension scenes.

 

So without an audience surrogate  character like that for the sequel here, how do they maintain this level of unpredictability?  It's pretty clever what they do - Brolin is enacting a plan again, and for the beginning of the movie it all goes well, but then things go badly - very badly - so now Brolin's plan is in ruins and they have to improvise, so now you have no idea what's coming next like the first movie.  So smart!

 

Also once again, Benecio Del Toro's character is kind of just there in the beginning, then gradually becomes the main character by the end again.  He gets a lot of the best scenes in the movie, which is filled with great action scenes (better than the first film's ones, overall, I'd say) and great tension scenes.

Both films are really well done modern thriller action flicks and now I'll be happy if they make a third!

This Taylor Sheridan guy... he can write a good flick

[A24 4,333]

14 minutes ago, Jay said:

 

 

Sicario: Day of the Soldado

 

I think I like it more than the first one? 😲

 

 

 

I know I did!

[Jay 37,359]

Both are good, but the second one had better, and more intense action scenes I think.  It felt more like a continuous, ever increasing ratcheting up of tension

[SteveMc 2,674]

 

The French Connection

First time watching this classic front to back.  It is visceral, but does not feel excessive or artificial.  A wonderful example of cinematic balance.  It does not dwell too long on character or rely too heavily on plot, it just has a confidence and a fullness in these elements, helped by the excellent performances and direction, that draws you in.  The movie just plays out, without artifice.  And yet, for that to happen, the guiding hand has to be extremely deft.  You feel there, in the thick of 70s New York and its dark side.  I'm not sure dark side is the right word, though.  Unlike movies that seem focused intently and obviously on the dark side of society or the psyche, this one feels like it is just putting a camera quite naturally in front of society and the psyche.  There is no dark side or light side or even society or psyche, there is just life, basic motivations, actions, and consequences, all without the artifice of a message.  This is a kind of filmmaking that does not really exist anymore, and the fact that it ever existed at all is remarkable.

4/4

 

[Raiders of the SoundtrArk 2,433]

1 hour ago, Jay said:

 

Sicario: Day of the Soldado

 

Wow!  I had never seen this before; I saw the first film and loved it, but the sequel being made without Villeneuve or Blunt made it look like kind of a cash grab to me.  Even though it got some great reviews I kinda hesitated about it.  A few months ago we watched Sicario, and I loved it again.  So now I have finally watched the sequel and... it's surprisingly good?  Like, I think I like it more than the first one? 😲

 

The first film is so great because it primarily follows Emily Blunt's character as she gets mixed up in the world Josh Brolin is shaping.  Everything goes according to Brolin's plan, but you never know what it all is about because Blunt doesn't know and finds out along the way.  So you're engaged with the story the whole time as it's filled with amazing action and tension scenes.

 

So without an audience surrogate this time, how do they maintain this level on unpredictability?  Again Brolin is enacting a plan, and for the beginning of the movie it all goes well, but then what happens is things go badly, very badly, so now Brolin's plan is in ruins and they have to improvise, so again you have no idea what to expect.  It's brilliantly done.

 

Also once again, Benecio Del Toro's character is kind of just there in the beginning, then gradually becomes the main character by the end again.  He gets a lot of the best scenes in the movie, which is filled with great action scenes (better than the first film's ones, overall, I'd say) and great tension scenes.

Both films are really well done modern thriller action flicks and now I'll be happy if they make a third!

I think I still prefer the first one just because of Blunt, the music and the perfect Deakins photography

Now I know they were supposed to make a third one but I don't know how advanced it is. All I know is that they wanted a third director to direct it to have another really different story telling and that Blunt might come back which would be terrific after what happen at the end of Day of the Soldado

[Jay 37,359]

Oh yea I forgot to mention the score!

 

I thought Hildur Guðnadóttir's score was fantastic, really was a crucial part of the tone and feel the whole film head.  It was like this extra layer of dread over almost all the proceedings.  Great work (I liked it much more than Joker, though I have no interest in listening to either's OST album)

[Naïve Old Fart 9,527]

I've not seen the second SICARIO film, but I thought that the first one was just an extended plot thread, from TRAFFIC, complete with rip-off cinematography.

[Jay 37,359]

Maybe you'd like the second one more then!

[Naïve Old Fart 9,527]

Perhaps. I'll see if my local library stocks it.

[Koray Savas 2,251]

2 hours ago, Jay said:

This Taylor Sheridan guy... he can write a good flick

I was a big fan as well, until I watched Those Who Wish Me Dead. Big fan of Sicario and Wind River, still need to see Hell Or High Water and Day Of The Soldado.

[Jay 37,359]

Sicario - great!

Hell of High Water - amazing!

WInd River - it was fine

Sicario 2 - great!

WIthout Remorse - it was fine

Those Who Wish Me Dead - have not seen yet

[Raiders of the SoundtrArk 2,433]

Sicario - amazing

Hell of High Water - amazing

Wind River - great

Sicario 2 - amazing

the rest - dunno

47 minutes ago, Naïve Old Fart said:

I've not seen the second SICARIO film, but I thought that the first one was just an extended plot thread, from TRAFFIC, complete with rip-off cinematography.

Why do you think the cinematography is rip-off? I personnaly find that Deakins really did a great job by giving some kind of neutral tone to the less ambiguous scenes and an surrealistic contrast to the others accentuating the madness at the border

[Jay 37,359]

 

Jay and Silent Bob Reboot

 

This is a film made for a very small audience, that being fans of Kevin Smith's original 5 films (Clerks, Mallrats, Chasing Amy, Dogma, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back), who want to watch another version of Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back but with all the cast 20 years older, no Randal, different cameos, and modern references and mentality.  It's very self-indulgent and I don't think would have any appeal to anyone who doesn't know his original films since this film is almost constant, specific references to each one.

 

I liked all those original films at the time, so was mostly amused by this love letter to them.  Some parts worked better than others, but it most just bubbled along at mild amusement level, rarely elevating to actual laugh out loud moments, but I think I did have a pretty good laugh a few times.

[Raiders of the SoundtrArk 2,433]

4 minutes ago, Jay said:

 

Jay and Silent Bob Reboot

 

This is a film made for a very small audience, that being fans of Kevin Smith's original 5 films (Clerks, Mallrats, Chasing Amy, Dogma, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back), who want to watch another version of Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back but with all the cast 20 years older, no Randal, different cameos, and modern references and mentality.  It's very self-indulgent and I don't think would have any appeal to anyone who doesn't know his original films since this film is almost constant, specific references to each one.

 

I liked all those original films at the time, so was mostly amused by this love letter to them.  Some parts worked better than others, but it most just bubbled along at mild amusement level, rarely elevating to actual laugh out loud moments, but I think I did have a pretty good laugh a few times.

Is that your biopic?

[Naïve Old Fart 9,527]

10 minutes ago, May the Force be with You said:

Why do you think the cinematography is rip-off? I personnaly find that Deakins really did a great job by giving some kind of neutral tone to the less ambiguous scenes and an surrealistic contrast to the others accentuating the madness at the border

Granted, it's been quite a while since I watched SICARIO, so I'll need to reappraise it.

At the time, I felt that the cinematography was too reminiscent of TRAFFIC, in having different colour schemes for the individual threads. Of course, altering colour is nothing new in cinema * (I love how, in INSOMNIA, the colour becomes less and less saturated as the story goes on, signifying Pacino's ever-deteriorating physical and emotional state), but I felt that, in SICARIO, it didn't fit the film.

 

*ffi, please see THE WIZARD OF OZ, and A MATTER OF LIFE AND DEATH 

[Raiders of the SoundtrArk 2,433]

Well perhaps it's because I've seen Sicario before Traffic that I don't have this feelings. Noticed that I actualy find Traffic less good than Sicario probably for the same reason than you prefer Traffic.

Insomnia and the Wizard of Oz surely have an astonishing work on the cinematography, I haven't seen A Matter of Life and Death yet though but I'll try to catch it up

[Naïve Old Fart 9,527]

20 minutes ago, May the Force be with You said:

...I haven't seen A Matter of Life and Death yet...

Unacceptable!

Watch it, now. In fact, watch every film by Powell and Pressburger!

Recommended titles are:

I KNOW WHERE I'M GOING,

THE LIFE AND DEATH OF COLONEL BLIMP,

GONE TO EARTH,

BLACK NARCISSUS,

THE RED SHOES,

TALES OF HOFFMAN,

THE CANTERBURY TALES.

Also watch PEEPING TOM.

 

[Raiders of the SoundtrArk 2,433]

I will, I will. I know I that I have a lot of movie to catch up...

[Sweeping Strings 2,358]

Yay, other people who prefer the Sicario sequel! I like Blunt in other things (Edge Of Tomorrow, Girl On The Train, A Quiet Place), but I just didn't buy her as a DEA type in the first film and that marred it for me.   

[Jay 37,359]

Oh man I thought she was great in Sicario, I had no problem with her acting or that character in that film.  But Sicario 2 really works without that type of character or her presence

 

And yea, she's great in Edge of Tomorrow, one hell of an underrated film!

[A24 4,333]

Didn't feel her in Sicario either, and it's probably one of the reasons why the movie didn't do anything for me. It could be vice versa, though. Come to think of it, none of the characters in Blade Runner 2049 were interesting to me. Maybe Dune is already doomed?

[Naïve Old Fart 9,527]

Lynch > Villeneuve

[Marian Schedenig 8,193]

I thought Blunt was very good in Sicario, and her character was fine, too. It's still my least favourite Villeneuve though. I'd never thought the sequel would be worthy of interest, but it's on my list now.

[A24 4,333]

3 minutes ago, Naïve Old Fart said:

Lynch > Villeneuve

 

Nolan and Villeneuve are two of the most celebrated directors but neither of them is really good at creating great characters. 

 

[Naïve Old Fart 9,527]

He who controls the Spice, controls the universe!

Lynch...for the win 

[KK 3,307]

I love Villeneuve's Sicario and think it's a masterclass on tension and release. Was never interested in the sequel (no Villeneuve, no Deakins, no Johannsson...), but maybe will check it out sometime given all the love here.

[Raiders of the SoundtrArk 2,433]

1 hour ago, Jay said:

Oh man I thought she was great in Sicario, I had no problem with her acting or that character in that film.  But Sicario 2 really works without that type of character or her presence

I think the character of Isabella Moner has a similar presence: she embodies the innocence at the frontier in the shadow of Del Toro a bit like Blunt's character.

[bollemanneke 3,348]

The interview. Kim Jong-Un has no sense of humour, none at all! It was great. Got a bit distracted at the start of the first half, but that wasn’t the movie’s fault. James Franco sounds a lot like Jason Bateman and the music was great. Also I learnt a new verb: to honeypot.

[Marian Schedenig 8,193]

Since I'd only seen it once (on TV) and was gifted the Blu-ray a few years ago, I finally gave Superman (1978) another chance. Nope. If anything, I enjoyed it less than last time. About the only likeable about it was the score, and I like that less than half as much as most here. I'll stick to the superior Monty Python version.

[bruce marshall 1,315]

On 5/20/2021 at 11:20 AM, Naïve Old Fart said:

Unacceptable!

Watch it, now. In fact, watch every film by Powell and Pressburger!

Recommended titles are:

I KNOW WHERE I'M GOING,

THE LIFE AND DEATH OF COLONEL BLIMP,

GONE TO EARTH,

BLACK NARCISSUS,

THE RED SHOES,

TALES OF HOFFMAN,

THE CANTERBURY TALES.

Also watch PEEPING TOM.

 

I just got around to ONE OF OUR AIRCRAFT is missing.

Makes a good double bill with masterpiece 49th PARALLEL!

[Holko 9,526]

6 hours ago, Marian Schedenig said:

Since I'd only seen it once (on TV) and was gifted the Blu-ray a few years ago, I finally gave Superman (1978) another chance. Nope. If anything, I enjoyed it less than last time. About the only likeable about it was the score, and I like that less than half as much as most here. I'll stick to the superior Monty Python version.

I love the score but agreed about the rest. It all went downhill for me after Krypton and never recovered. Maybe the one part where Supes finally faces a real challenge and shows real emotion - when he finds Lois dead. Though that was his own fault wasting his own time with Tessmacher. And then he undoes it instantly.

[A24 4,333]

12 hours ago, KK said:

I love Villeneuve's Sicario and think it's a masterclass on tension 

 

That was exactly the thing that was missing, KK.

[Naïve Old Fart 9,527]

@bruce marshall,

I forgot about ONE OF OUR AIRCRAFT IS MISSING.

Good call, my young padewan 

 

 

 

 

9 hours ago, bollemanneke said:

The interview. Kim Jong-Un has no sense of humour, none at all! 

He's so ronery.

[bruce marshall 1,315]

More importantly....

You forgot the incredible 49th PARALLEL!

" With the music of Ralph Vaughan Williams".

Check out Criterion release

 

 

Btw I've never heard of GONE TO EARTH.

I think?😗

[Naïve Old Fart 9,527]

Yes, that's a very good one, as well.

[bruce marshall 1,315]

Tell me about GONE TO EARTH.

Please

On 5/19/2021 at 10:16 PM, AC1 said:

 

You had to be there in 1987, when somehow this movie made more sense. 

...and Andre the Giant was a thing!😁

[Naïve Old Fart 9,527]

4 hours ago, bruce marshall said:

 

...and Andre the Giant was a thing!😁

I'm on the Brute Squad.

You are the Brute Squad.

 

 

 

4 hours ago, bruce marshall said:

Tell me about GONE TO EARTH.

Please

😁

Well...er...it's a film...and...um...I like it...and...that's what you breathe, on Mars...

 

 

 

 

(edit) @bruce marshall, I could tell you that GONE TO EARTH is a fine film (which it is). I could tell you that GONE TO EARTH is the best thing since sliced bread (which it probably isn't), but that would not convince you. You must watch the film for yourself, and make up your own mind.

[Sweeping Strings 2,358]

17 hours ago, Jay said:

Oh man I thought she was great in Sicario, I had no problem with her acting or that character in that film.  But Sicario 2 really works without that type of character or her presence

 

And yea, she's great in Edge of Tomorrow, one hell of an underrated film!

 

She's funny, too ... on a chat show when asked if her and Krasinski had one of those Hollywood couple 'mash-up' names like Bennifer and Brangelina, she replied without missing a beat 'Yes ... it's Krunt.'  

[karelm 2,913]

I just saw the Cabin in the Woods from 2011.  It was excellent!

 

Spoiler

The first half is your very run of the mill teen slasher film which does a great job of luring you in but the second half completely surprised me and by the final end, I was so engaged - very, very fun!

 

[Jay 37,359]

Aye, that's a fun one!  I like that it was marketed as one type of movie but ended up being something totally different.  Good stuff

[bruce marshall 1,315]

A HIDDEN LIFE

 

Exactly what I expected.

[Jurassic Shark 12,074]

Did you find it?

[bruce marshall 1,315]

28 minutes ago, Jurassic Shark said:

Did you find it?

Still searching....

[Koray Savas 2,251]

On 5/21/2021 at 1:07 PM, KK said:

I love Villeneuve's Sicario and think it's a masterclass on tension and release. Was never interested in the sequel (no Villeneuve, no Deakins, no Johannsson...), but maybe will check it out sometime given all the love here.

Sheridan wrote the script and Hildur succeeded Johansson. Have faith!

[Jurassic Shark 12,074]

You joker!

[Matt C 454]

On 5/19/2021 at 5:52 PM, Chen G. said:

 

I'm told its a comedy, but I'd be lying if I said I watched Princess Bride rolling-over laughing.

 

A lot of it is struck me as a straight-faced adventure film.

 

I tried watching The Princess Bride multiple times... it comes off as a too cutesy, self-aware adventure film. I can't get into it... and I really do like Elwes and Wright in it. The supporting characters are what kill the movie for me.

 

When Stardust first came out, people were comparing it favorably to Princess Bride. I think it's better than Bride, because Matthew Vaughn hits the right tone, the movie is humorous without winking at itself, the stakes feel real, the whole cast is excellent and there's a genuine sense of fun and adventure.

[Jay 37,359]

I like both Princess Bride and Stardust a lot! Never thought of comparing the two